Realizing that not all gardeners have the time or carpentry skills to construct a conventional raised garden bed, a Portland-based startup releases a modular garden bed system made from recycled plastic that's literally a snap to assemble.

As even the most seasoned greenthumb could probably tell you, building a raised garden bed isn’t always the most effortless affair particularly for those who don’t have the time, the basic carpentry skills, or the lengthy list of materials on hand (lumber, nails, hammer, tape measure, power saw, level, a pickup truck to haul all those materials home in etc.) to do so.

This is where TogetherFarm Blocks, an interlocking modular raised garden bed system with ample LEGO-esque appeal, comes in.

After kicking some serious crowdfunding butt during a Kickstarter campaign held this past fall, TogetherFarm Blocks recently became available for purchase on Amazon.com. So if you’ve been itching to build a raised garden bed in just minutes instead of hours without needing the requisite hardware and tools normally with associated the task and you have some Amazon cash leftover from the holidays that you’re not sure how to spend, I’d suggest jumping on it.

Conceived by a trio of greenthumbs while MBA students at Concordia University in Portland, Ore., the TogetherFarm concept was initially geared toward beginning urban gardeners working with a minimal amount of space (read: balconies and tiny shared plots) although experienced home gardeners — and the kiddos! — can also reap the benefits of this easy-to-assemble snap-together system composed of durable yet lightweight recycled plastic blocks that are also BPA- and phthalate-free. "We wanted to come up with a product that would meet a need and serve an urban population and home gardener,” co-founded Matt Stormont tells the Los Angeles Times.

In a world where people are increasingly disconnected from their food sources, TogetherFarm Blocks provide a way for people to rediscover how food grows and experience the delicious taste of homegrown produce. The blocks are fun to put together and are a great way to involve kids in the entire gardening experience.

Versatility in the design department is a key benefit of the TogetherFarm system, a system that’s sold as a 2’ x 2’ kit (24 blocks). Looking to build a bigger garden bed? Buy a couple of kits and combine them.

You can quickly and easily assemble a garden box in whatever space you have available. Whether you want an 'L' shaped box at the corner of your patio, or a 'horseshoe' shaped box in your front yard, TogetherFarm Blocks make it possible to build a box of any shape or size. Specially designed holes in the blocks allow you to anchor the blocks to the ground with a stake or add a trellis or a greenhouse cover. If you get tired of a certain garden box shape, take the blocks apart and rebuild them in a new configuration or location. The options are endless!

The made-in-the-US blocks are currently available in slate grey. However, the TogetherFarm team promises more festively hued blocks in the future. Again, the UV-resistant bloacks are made from 100 percent food-grade recycled plastic and are durable enough to last several seasons in the elements, but if for some reason you need to trash ‘em, they can easily be recycled via most curbside recycling programs.

Head on over to Amazon.com to peruse the goods (the price tag for the 2’ x 2’ kit is $49.00) and also to the TogetherFarm blog where you can plenty of helpful hort-related tips and tidbits — and a recipe for tasty-looking “bread machine pumpkin bagels.”

That said, the TogetherFarm team isn’t just trying to peddle a handy-dandy gardening product — they're also trying nourish a community of like-minded gardeners while bringing attention to the vitality of locally-grown veggies: “Unlike other blogs and sources of information, we share our defeats as well as our victories. We believe that learning through others mistakes can often help readers avoid some of their own. Although regionalized, these lessons can be applied to other regions around the country, as well as around the world.”